Pineapple Coconut Cake Squares – A Family Recipe

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This Pineapple Coconut Cake is a family recipe my father used to make on birthdays, holidays and other special celebrations.

When the recipe went missing for almost three decades, the cake became a legend, a culinary memory often spoken about.

Finally, the Pineapple Coconut cake recipe was discovered, and after all those years, it is still as light and delicious as I remember from back in the day.

If you are preparing for a party and looking for a make-ahead cake, you’ve got it. This cake tastes even better the next day. That is of course if you haven’t finished it by then yet.

The topping is like a coconut macaroon spread itself out over a layer of pineapple. The pineapple coconut topping will also be the perfect amount of sticky the next day.

How the Coconut Pineapple Cake became a legend

Growing up it was my mother who did most of the cooking and baking in our house. Making this cake even more special because it was not my mother, but my father who baked this cake for us. He made it on holidays and birthday celebrations, or when special guests would come over.

He was always in a good mood on those days. The house would smell delicious and the music turned up a little louder.

Cake days were good days.

Then one day he lost the recipe. Couldn’t find it anymore. And the cake became a story. One told many times.

Remember that pineapple coconut cake dad used to make?

Years later, people were still talking about the cake my dad had made at some party in the eighties.

A culinary memory you wish to taste again. But the recipe was lost and the exact ingredients forgotten.

Fast forward to a week or so ago.

I had asked my mom if I could have her Beb Vuyk Cookbook. Think Julia Child but for Indonesian cuisine. A must have if you are into Indonesian food. And it part of the Dutch-Indonesian culture. The book of books.

Anyway, so my Mom brought me the book. And a folder filled with her recipes handwritten throughout the years. There even were some written by my grandmother in there.

And my fathers recipe.

Now that we got the recipe back, let’s make and enjoy it.

Don’t let the fact that we’re making this from scratch scare you. If you can make a dump cake, you can make this.

The 3 most important cake baking tips

To make it even easier let’s start with a few basic cake baking tips to give you a headstart and bake a great cake.

Before you even touch any of the ingredients, turn your oven on. It will be preheated by the time you finished preparing the cake batter. Also when you have your cake in the oven, don’t keep opening and closing it to check on your cake. All the heat will escape and that will mess up your baking time.

Always make sure your eggs and butter are at room temperature before you start. It is much easier to mix room temperature ingredients than it is cold ingredients. Cut your butter in small pieces to speed up the process.

Take a moment to sift your flour. Really. Go find that sifter. Sifting makes your flour lighter and makes all the difference for your final cake. It is all in the details. Do you want an average cake or a perfectly light and airy cake? And it really doesn’t take that much time or effort to do. Jus sift it.

Pineapple Coconut Cake Squares

Yield: 12

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

This Pineapple Coconut Cake is a family recipe my father used to make on birthdays and other celebrations. When the recipe went missing for almost three decades, the cake became a culinary memory often spoken about. Finally, the recipe was discovered, and after all those years, the cake is still as light and delicious as I remember from back in the day. Added Bonus: This is a great choice for a make-ahead cake. It tastes even better the next day. That is of course if you haven’t finished it by then yet.

Instructions

For the cake bottom:

Combine the eggs with the sugar in a large bowl. Mix until it starts to foam.

Add the water and sifted self rising flour. Keep mixing till the batter is smooth.

Fold in the pineapple chunks. Feel free to take about 1/3 of a cup of pineapple from the can used for the topping. It will generally leave you with enough to cover the cake.

Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish. Smooth it out with a spatula if needed.

Place it in the middle of the oven and bake for 20 minutes or when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. It should have a lovely golden brown color.

For the pineapple coconut topping:

Drain the pineapple, and evenly spread the pineapple chunks on top of the cake.

Whisk together the butter, egg, sugar and vanilla sugar in a bowl until smooth; stir in coconut. and the shredded coconut. On low heat, stir until its an even mass. It will be like a coconut macaroon texture.

Spread evenly on top of the pineapple,

Return the cake to the oven for another 5 minutes until the coconut is golden brown,

Let the cake cool completely in the oven dish before cutting into 12 squares.

Notes

You can purchase self-rising flour on Amazon, but you can also make your own by combining 2 cup all-purpose flour with 2 teaspoon baking powder and a 1/2 teaspoon salt.